Leelavati Devi, abandoned by her family in Mumbai, got on a Shramik train to Delhi, only to be welcomed into Delhi’s North Avenue
When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, many lives were permanently altered. One of those was Leelawati Kedarnath Dubey’s - a 70-year-old woman who lived with her son, Dinesh Kumar Dubey in Mumbai’s Mahul Gaon.
Leelavati ‘Devi’, as she is sometimes referred to, was abandoned by her son, an autorickshaw driver, and daughter-in-law, despite paying for her food expenses while living with them.
She walked out of home, was offered some biscuits and water from a truck driver, and somehow reached the Bandra railway station. Railway official, Suhani Mishra, along with a few others, comforted Devi and helped her board a train back to Delhi, according to a Hindustan Times article.
As news of Devi’s woes spread, Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP, Sanjay Singh, stepped up and welcomed the elderly woman into their home.
She will be with us from now on. This will be her permanent home,” Singh, standing next to his wife, told the Indian Express.
Before being invited into Singh’s home, Devi had been welcomed by another Delhi-based family, who later ended up abandoning her for unknown reasons.
Devi, originally from Delhi, went to Mumbai to care for her son, whose health had been deteriorating. “He stays with his wife and children. Over time, his health improved. When I was no longer needed, I was thrown out,” she said.
Devi says her woes started after the demise of her husband. Along with a daughter, she has two other sons, who live in Delhi as well.
Singh lives with his wife, two children, parents, and Devi in his official residence.
“Leelavati mostly spends time chatting with the family. Her elder daughter did reach out a few times; no one else has. How can we send her back to people who ill-treated her? She is a part of the family now,” reported a close aide of the MP, Ajit Tyagi, to the Indian Express.